Chinese Corona’Anal Test’ humiliation… “I would rather not go home on New Year’s Day”

After Chinese health officials have introduced anal tests for the novel coronavirus infection (Corona 19) in some areas, some citizens are giving up on going home during the Lunar New Year holiday, Hong Kong’s Bin Fruit Daily reported.

He said he would rather not go home than to undergo a humiliating examination to obtain a certificate that there is nothing wrong. The Chinese government mandated that returnees visiting their hometown during the Lunar New Year holidays have a certificate that was negative in the nucleic acid test 7 days before departure.

In addition to the tests that put cotton swabs in the mouth in China, there is a backlash as Corona 19 anal tests are conducted in some areas. The photo shows a collection of samples taken with cotton swabs by medical staff in Qingdao, China. [신화=연합뉴스]

Not everyone has anal examinations in China, but anal examinations have been done in some areas. According to the state-run Global Times, anal examinations are targeted at high-risk groups, such as those who have entered the country or who are in close contact with the confirmed case in Beijing and Qingdao in Shandong Province.

Bloomberg News reported that at a school in Beijing where the confirmed corona 19 was found, 1,000 faculty and students were tested for serum antibody and nasal cavity, as well as the anus with a cotton swab. In Yangzhou, Jiangsu Province, this method was used to monitor the health status of workers unloading frozen food.

Corona test on the 14th in Harbin, China [AFP=연합뉴스]

The anal test was introduced in response to claims that the coronavirus would remain in samples taken from the digestive and feces for longer than the respiratory (3-5 days). In an interview with China Central (CC) TV, an infectious disease specialist, Li Tong-jung, insisted that “the accuracy can be improved by performing an anal swab test.”

However, Bloomberg reported that “there is no evidence that virus transmission is more common among patients who test positive in the anus.”

Among those who have been tested, many respondents say, “It’s not harmful, but it was very insulting.” It is said that the process of gently rotating the swab several times after inserting the end of the swab about 3 to 5 cm is said to be involved.

Weibo, a Chinese version of the Twitter, recently posted a video of children who come out after an anal examination in Shijiazhuang, Hebei Province, walking like chubby penguins. There are many reactions such as “Anal examination makes the test subject walk like a penguin” and “It must have been difficult to bear, but I am sorry.”

Children in Shijiazhuang, Hebei Province, China, were posted on the Internet as they wandered out like penguins after having an anal exam for Corona 19. [웨이보]

According to a poll conducted by Weibo, 80% of respondents said that the anal exam was’unacceptable’, the Washington Post reported.

During the Lunar New Year holidays, a “large movement of peoples” was held every year in China, but this New Year, some say they stay at work because they are reluctant to test for coronavirus. In addition, there are cases where the Chinese government and corporations are urging them to refrain from moving, and giving up on homecoming after giving various benefits such as subsidies to employees who remain at work even during the holiday season.

In fact, China’s largest holiday, the Lunar New Year, began on the 28th, but as Corona 19 continues to spread, the number of passengers such as air and rail has decreased significantly. According to the Ministry of Transport of China on the 29th, 1.7 billion people are expected to move during the Lunar New Year transportation this year. This is a 40% decrease from the same period in 2019, before the spread of Corona 19.

According to the China National Hygiene and Health Commission on the 31st, 92 new confirmed cases occurred in China on the 30th, of which 73 were local infections in China.

Reporter Seo Yujin [email protected]